The Confrontation in the Tavern was a duel that occurred at the height of the feud between Eleanor Guthrie and Captain Ned Low of the Fancy.
History[]
Background[]
Ned Low and his men arrived in Nassau and tried to sell the cargo from the merchant vessel, the Good Fortune, to Eleanor Guthrie. However, she refused to pay the full price because all of the containers were covered in blood, requiring her to pay for them to be repackaged. Meeks, Low's quartermaster, tried to explain that they were both unaware of the rule and forced to kill the crew, who turned on them once they boarded. The latter statement was a lie, and Eleanor knew that the Good Fortune was supposed to be an easy prize to capture.
Low later introduced himself to Eleanor. He tries to intimidate her with a speech of how his crew know he is a monster, in order to get her to pay full price for the Good Fortune's cargo. Eleanor had refused after an earlier argument with Meeks, to whom she explained that due to the bloodstained nature of the barrels, she needs to repackage them. Eleanor refuses however.
Meeks fears that Low's continued defiance against Eleanor will poison the crew's vital relationship with her. Low and the rest of the crew are unworried however, believing that they will all be rich after they ransom Abigail Ashe to her father, Lord Peter Ashe, the governor of Carolina, and therefore they do not have to care about their relationship with her. He approaches Eleanor to try and depose Low, fearing that he will lead the crew into ruin, however Eleanor is forced to cut the meeting short to meet with the Consortium.
Meek's Execution[]
Unbeknownst to Meeks, he was followed by Holmes, who warned Low that Meeks had gone to meet Eleanor. Holmes and Low return to the tavern and corner Meeks at the bar. Low says he was told by Holmes that Meeks was seen nervously entering Eleanor's office. Low says he is forced to wonder if Meeks was meeting with her to seek an ally in deposing Low. Meeks insists that he has a duty to the men to protect them from Low and from themselves. Low says that he does, but there is also the possibility that Meeks is just a spineless traitor. Low and Holmes then grab Meeks and slowly behead him, his screams drawing Eleanor and Vane to the scene.
The Duel[]
Eleanor orders Low to leave, and O'Malley tries to compel him to leave by holding his sword to his neck. Low responds by attacking O'Malley. Eleanor's other mercenaries are prevented from intervening by Low's men, who hold them at gunpoint. The two fight for a time, but eventually Low is able to bring O'Malley to his knees with a slash to his stomach. Over Eleanor's pleas, Low finishes O'Malley off by stabbing him in the neck.
Aftermath[]
The confrontation exposed Eleanor's weakness to the street and emboldened Low, who prepared to make further moves against Eleanor, paying Vane a tribute of 10% of their last haul in order to keep him out of the conflict. Desperate, Eleanor informs Vane that she heard that Low has a secret cargo of incredible value to compel him to move against Low. Vane learns from Max that the "cargo" is Abigail Ashe. Vane leads his men in the Massacre aboard the Fancy, where they kill Low and his entire crew and take Abigail Ashe to Fort Nassau.